Editor's Corner

Cornelius Eady, Hardheaded Weather, new and selected poems: This exciting new collection both delineates the arc of the poet’s universe and highlights the range of his talents with sly, unsentimental, witty poems. (Marian Wood)

Maxine Kumin, Still to Mow, poems: In her seventeenth book of poetry, Kumin’s signature nature poems are luminously invigorated by darker human realities. Potently, she focuses on myriad subjects, including the pleasures of horse keeping, Dick Cheney’s “canned hunting,” and the disappointments and joys of marriage. (Norton)

Philip Levine, Tarumba, translation of poems by Jaime Sabines, with Ernesto Trejo: Sabines is a national treasure in Mexico, and this bilingual edition presents the full power of his secretive, wild, bittersweet poems, stepping into his streets, brothels, hospitals, and cantinas. (Sarabande)

Maxine Kumin, Mites to Mastodons, children’s poems: A fascinating cornucopia of poems that exudes whimsical affection for all the creatures in our kingdom. Illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski. (Houghton Mifflin)

Paul Muldoon, Horse Latitudes, poems: This magnificent new collection presents us with fields of battle and fields of debate in which we often seem to be at a standstill. (FSG)

Gail Mazur, Zeppo’s First Wife, poems: This splendid collection of new and selected works draws on Mazur’s four previous books, showcasing her poetic achievements and wry meditations on the everyday. (Chicago)

Mark Strand, Man and Camel, poems: Strand’s remarkable eleventh collection is a toast to life’s transience, abiding beauty, and the meaning in the sound of language. (Knopf)

Robert Pinsky, The Life of David, nonfiction: Pinsky teases apart the many strands of David’s story in this vibrant  retelling, which includes a wealth of legend as well as scripture. (Schocken)

Madison Smartt Bell, Toussaint Louverture, a biography: A masterful portrait of the man who led the first—and only—successful slave revolution in history. (Pantheon)